Caravan
by coralown
Summary: Are you brave enough to fight for better fate?..


_**Caravan**_

" _U-u-u-u-ugh"_ – the screaming wind was hardly touching indifferent camels' withers, staying just for a minute, immediately going down, juggling with little heaps of sand, like a hooligan throwing several grains of sand into somebody's eyes here and there.

At the very desert's entrance there wasn't so much sand, but everybody from the caravan had to cover their faces with scarves. It was an early morning, the sun didn't rise yet, so the air was fresh and it was still dark. Somewhere in the distance yellow flashes of fire were blazing up into the skies. Every time when the flame was lighting the suburbs, half-ruined shacks were looking into empty space of desert with its burning eyes. Goods and chattels with broken utensils were thrown all over the streets and some part of cattle, that was left here, was walking along the empty streets, frightened by every strange sound. People were afraid too: they were trying to lead forward the fattest cattle and carts full of valuables.

Near the slanted fence there was sitting _a Hound_. His owners had forgotten him when they picked up their property in a crazy vanity, and now he was sitting there alone, seeing the caravan off with his eyes. Of course, he didn't understand what was going on, why his owners and the rest of the village had to leave, but he didn't seem to worry, he was just sitting and staring at that mess.

" _What's the matter in barking_? – _He_ thought, - _No one is going to sit beside me, no one is going to treat me with a fresh bone or a good story of what's happening here"._

Right after this thought the pack of local hounds showed up at the dusty road. All of them were pretty much like _a Hound –_ they were hungry, dirty and knew nothing. They ran past _a Hound_ with no paying attention to him, whether they were doing that on purpose or occasionally.

When the pack reached the caravan, it started barking out loudly at everybody: people, camels, mules, like if they were trying to tell them: _"What are you doing?! Come back, you fool! You've left us to die here!.."_

Children began to cry, scared of mad barking and growling. Their fathers tried to banish the dogs with blind anger in their eyes. The pack scattered for a while, but the story repeated five minutes later. Then people decided to tie all the dogs to the fence. 

_A Hound_ was just sitting at his place watching.

" _What's the matter in joining them now? They'll be caught anyway and if I'm with them, I'll suffer too"._

He was thinking like that, when a man, who was to tie the pack, noticed _a Hound_. He got closer _,_ full of desire to tie _Him_ too. _A Hound_ was sitting motionless like before.

\- Hey, doggy!.. – The man tried to call up _a Hound_ , - Come here! Be a good dog and I'll treat you!.. Come here!

He came closer and took a little piece of dried meat out of his bosom.

" _What's the matter in your treatment? – A Hound_ looked at the man with distrust, - _I am not a fool. I know you will tie me with the rest of pack and leave us there to die of thirst. I'd better stay here. Hungry, but alive"._

 _A Hound_ snarled a little to let the man know that he didn't believe him. Then _He_ tried to step back.

\- Oh, - The man sighed off and then smiled, - You're a smart boy!.. But don't you think that I've came here to tie the pack of mad dogs alone?..

At that very moment another man threw a loop on _a Hound's_ neck, tightening it up immediately, so that the animal couldn't escape. But _a Hound_ didn't even try to.

" _What's the matter in escaping now?.. May be I'll try when they are gone"._

Both of men were smiling, happy with their victory over _a Hound._ One of them took the rope and they went to another fence that was way more firm. All the pack was already there. When everything was done, the men hurried to catch up the caravan and soon they disappeared behind the sand hill.

All the dogs started wailing, whining, digging the dry soil near the fence or just running around the leash. Only _a Hound_ was calm.

" _What's the matter in resisting the fate? Look at yourself. You resisted, I didn't – and where're all we now?.. Don't waste so much energy on it. Dogs like me can bark, but the caravan moves on…"_


End file.
